Coastal Opens Hokie Invitational With Three Top-Fives

BLACKSBURG, Va. -
The Coastal Carolina women's indoor track and field team notched three top-five finishes on the opening day of the Hokie Invitational at Virginia Tech Friday evening.

Sophomore Amirah Al-Bayyinah led the way by taking runner-up honors in the triple jump with a leap of 12.08 meters. Al-Bayyinah, who won the triple jump at the Chants' season-opening meet last month, trailed only Thea LaFond of Maryland in Friday's competition. She notched the fifth top-five finish of her career and the third top-three.

Fellow sophomore Jessica Gelibert claimed a third-place finish in her opening meet of the season, clocking 8.67 seconds in the final of the 60-meter hurdles. Gelibert took .06 seconds off of her preliminary time and finished behind only runners from N.C. State and Charlotte. The 8.67 time was .03 off of her personal-best and third fastest of her career.

Freshman Leah Fair claimed the other top-five spot for Coastal, placing fifth in the 300 meters with a time of 40.11.

In the 3,000 meters, three Chanticleers finished among the top 11 and two set new career-bests. Competing in her second indoor season, Kyla van Graan placed seventh with a personal-best time of 9:54.38, while junior Letitia Saayman followed right behind in eighth with a new best of 9:55.17. Freshman Aynslee van Graan had a strong collegiate debut, clocking 10:01.65 to finish 11th in the event.

Senior Emily Marchini also established a new personal-best in the mile run, finishing in a time of 5:01 to place sixth. Also finishing sixth was freshman Emma Kroger, who improved to a clearance of 3.35 meters in the pole vault in her second meet for CCU. Fellow freshman Kristen Sansbury made her collegiate debut, placing ninth in the weight throw with a mark of 16.14 meters.

In men's action, Coastal claimed two of the top three spots in the 60-meter hurdles. Redshirt sophomore Desmond Wallace was runner-up in the event with a time of 8.03, while freshman Kevondre' Hunt placed third in 8.13. Sophomore Corey Hackett-Greene and freshman Ishmael Kamara also claimed third-place finishes on the day as Hackett-Greene clocked 6.89 in the final of the 60-meters and Kamara recorded a mark of 14.57 in the triple jump.